GrahamC

Just for reference at least we know whose decision this was now if results are iffy. Those saying last week we need 5 or 6 players will soon be blaming a manager who is operating under a far tighter regime than one of his predecessors. I wondered when Bajic was included on the bench on Saturday if NP was trying to maximise what we had but there cannot be another team in the division with so little experience in the goalkeeping department. Not changed my view that we need a change of owner & chairman far more than we need a change of manager.

Yep & I’ll bet very good money they have been tipped off by BCC that permission will sail through. Bristol Labour group are very noticeably & vocally behind them (remarkably mute though during the Ashton Vale saga, weren’t they?) & have effectively portrayed the Greens as anti development to the point where they are being forced to come out & say they are in favour too but want the correct process followed. Must be amazing to live outside of South Bristol & have local politicians who give a **** about where you live, eh?

You appear in the minority & it looks very much a case of history repeating. Strong successful manager is something SL finds threatening, he needs a brown noser or a mediocrity, that’s much more his style. Desperate stuff yet again.

My guess is on top. So basically this lad is £2m if we want to sign him permanently but we would already have paid £700k of it upfront.

Confirmed by the Midlands media that he isn’t available to play against WBA (standard) & he’s also cup tied, so he can’t feature against Norwich either. Bound to go into the squad for Friday though.

Edwards career on loan so far would suggest to me he could still get a league club, we can all take the Mick out of the SPL but he was playing against Celtic & Rangers last season. Pearson looks more likely to drop into the National League to me.

Lots of rumours with HNM that his father (& I believe now his agent) is far too involved in his career & has been rejecting offers trying to get the highest wages, this doesn’t look so smart now every major European league has kicked off & he still doesn’t have a club.

He’s replied! “TGH is a youngish lad who has come through our academy. He started off as a right back/winger and still drops in there at times but he's really a centre mid player. He's been used as more of a number 6/8 (defensive midfield/ attacking midfield to you and me) but the current manager sees him more as a number 10. I think he's more suited to the number 8 role as he's fit and a good runner and a decent passer of a ball. I'm not convinced he's creative enough for the 10 role. There's a lot of disappointed Baggies fans that he's not seen as a player we want in our squad this season. As you're probably aware, we are really struggling financially and are having to let some players go either permanently or on loan to lighten the wage bill. I can't see that he earns a great deal though so wouldn't imagine it's that reason he's going. We have heard loan with no "right to buy" but not sure if the message is different for you? I think he will do a really good job for a Championship team if he can get a good run in the side and if he's played in the right position. Don't get me wrong, he's no Alex Scott but he's an honest hard working midfielder.” There you go..

Going to send him a text but we’ve pretty much lost contact since the pandemic when anyway he seemed to have “lost the faith”. For me without Conway, Scott permanently & at present little clarity over resource I think we are in a period when we just need to tough it out. We weren’t great against Preston but that’s what we did, at Millwall seems like it was decent. We were very poor on Saturday though. I just can’t be doing with the “if we lose the next 3 we are in free fall” fatalist nonsense so beloved of a certain podcast. Life is short, be realistic but relentless pessimism gets no one anywhere.

W1 D1 L1. Doesn’t strike me that we are nailed on for bottom six yet based on that. Plus, less than 7% of the season played.. Pretty sure you were one of the posters saying Scott would stay, followed by numerous seriously ludicrous suggestions for signings. Dear oh dear.

Completely reasonable response. However his contract ran out on June 30th, his month’s pay in lieu of notice ran out on July 31st and next week it will be September. He’s therefore had plenty of time to evaluate the market & we are within our rights to withdraw the offer (in reality we probably already had) & move on.

Re Weimann a fair few of us heard that Stoke offered him a two year deal (on broadly similar terms) & the fact that we were prepared to offer three years to a player coming back from long term injury was what made him stay. Seeing as the following season was his 22 goal one that’s definitely one decision that worked out.

That it won’t ever change- this is how it is.

Pretty sure Hull moved it to Friday because there is Rugby League being played there at the weekend. Edit-apologies just seen @1960maaan has already said this! Nothing to do with TV & not being shown.

So you think we are in the market for players that West Brom don’t want to lose? Prepare to be very disappointed over the next week and indeed for however long you support us, then. Strangely I’m going to judge him on how he performs but in contrast to a lad who couldn’t get in Bolton’s side, this one is far more logical. Could of course still turn out to be a dud, that’s life.

Every time I have seen him he’s looked decent without being spectacular, adding a 21 year old with 50 Championship games under his belt makes sense in light of our small numbers, though intrigued that it appears a loan, as think he’s available to leave permanently if we had wanted him.

I’m not that sure we are trying to be a possession based side. Also 4 games in is a very low sample size & having lost Scott & not replaced him (who knows if we even will?) & Conway out through injury we are understandably look a bit thin, especially without Weimann & McCrorie as well. Some of those away games you quote are almost 6 months ago now when we had different players & so I’m not entirely sure of their relevance. What is clear is that as per Shuffs thread, we are at a bit of a crossroads, we definitely need a couple of players to give the squad less a feel of an U21 one, though any talk of there being 5 arrivals in the next 10 days seems fanciful to me. Last season we started off a very decent run by gritting out back to back 0-0s at Millwall & Coventry, with what we currently have available to us we might well have to look to do so again.

We were 14th last season & won 9, so not sure what you mean by 12th. Anyway I’m not bothered if the wins come at home or away but think we have been set up as the sort of side that is a counter attacking one, so that probably works better away. The loss of Semenyo’s pace & strength & Scott’s artistry is bound to make a difference though.

For me I think he’s had 2 poor home games but suggesting we are looking to replace him based on this & with McCrorie presumably going to be fit at some point is fantasy stuff that would see us have a first team squad of 35. We are short at CB, we need to add In midfield, there is certainly a question as to whether one senior goalkeeper is enough (probably not), but this knee jerk hysteria is embarrassing.

Bloody facts, getting in the way again. I’m still on the fence with this one but if it is going to happen surely it will be this week. Also worth pointing out regarding the fitness bit that he’s been working with a PT all summer & Timm Klose came straight in after signing in January’22 having not had a club for longer & did fine.

Think we are at a very interesting point. Saturday’s squad was missing Conway, Weimann, Atkinson & McCrorie, which is probably only about one above average in terms of absences yet of our 9 subs 5 have never started a Championship game & 3 haven’t featured in one at all. Another of the subs was Andy King, who we know is near to the end of his playing days & only there to provide experience & avoid it resembling an U21 team bench. SL said that if Pearson sold players he could expect funds, but the disparity between sales (& in addition to this moving the likes of Wilson & Low off the wage bill) & our incomings is stark. Whatever the Bolton lad who opted to stay ever does in the game the fact he was our initial target tells a lot about what type of player Pearson is now being expected to work with. I am very grateful for his investment in the infrastructure & cash flow but a sale to another owner cannot come quickly enough.

Would that be this “current form”? W2 D1 L1? I was also checking what Neil had said about our away scoring record (4 goals in 8 games) & it’s interesting how you can often make the stats say what you want; In our last 5 away league games now we have scored 5, however the two games in this run where we didn’t score were against 2 sides who are both now in the Prem. Doesn’t sound anywhere near as bad, does it?

And rightly should. The phrase throwing the baby out with the bath water comes to mind. Unlikely we keep him, Williams & Weimann on (& King is surely going to retire next summer) but we should keep at least one, arguably two of them. Succession planning is never about letting everyone go at the same time.

For all the good it did us with what then happened with Rob Dickie, I reckon we only subbed Joe because he was on a yellow, just like at Millwall. Different conversation but we were saying at HT, with Knight-Lebel, Araoye, King & a goalkeeper on the bench you can pretty much predict all our subs (& who for) in advance.

That I completely agree with. For me the issue isn’t a prolific striker, it’s the blend, as I don’t see many goals from our midfielders or at the back. Weimann mysteriously not rated by some on here & possibly Sykes are the only ones I can see chipping in apart from our strikers.